Sixtopia Station
by Ketaikeon
Summary: Alice is a relatively antisocial girl who is bored with her life. On her adventures in school and Maplestory, she soon discovers that the players of this "mindless game" harbor dark secrets.
1. Sleepless

"Come on, Hoshi! Let's get going already!"

Her fingers skittered eagerly across the keyboard for a few more moments, taking care of other messages. In boredom, she tapped a few keys and made her small figure jump about on the screen. Her black-clad character bounced unnaturally high at an intense speed. To others, the blown-up head of the character versus her tiny body made it look ridiculous, but Alice was already used to the cheesy, anime-esque art style of the game. Besides, she thought the wide, thoughtful gray eyes even looked a little cute. They certainly looked more innocent than her real face, with her squinty Asian eyes.

The figure beside it was standing still with an irritable expression. Clad in a white robe, he could have masqueraded as a priest were it not for the white jester cap on its head. Unlike the stylish cut of the female character, his reddish-brown bangs would have looked like an atomic explosion were it not for the cap holding it down.

"Look, why don't you just invite me to your party? Jeez, fucking 'sins. Always zooming around with their Haste," responded a disgruntled voice in her headphones. "And I still don't understand what your're doing with the old software shit. Seriously, just get in the MU already."

Alice bit her lip. The old Mental Unit System was loud on its startup, not to mention laggy as well. It was probably safer to play the came on the "old soft", in other words, by the standard keyboard and mouse and sitting in front of a computer monitor. It was a challenge of its own, controlling her character with only her hands. It was admittedly much different than the MU way of playing, immersing one's mind in the game and actually feeling and sensing everything in the fantasy world. There were several complications with playing old soft- such as not being able to speak out loud. For one thing, although she did have a voice chat program installed, she did not feel comfortable over talking without seeing the person's face. She did not even feel comfortable talking to even Hoshi, although they had been good online buddies for a whole summer. For another, her parents would probably be awakened at some point if she chose to speak out loud, however quietly. They would not be happy with her fooling around on an MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Role-playing Game) so late at night.

"Nah... 'tisn't a good idea. Parental units unhappy." she typed back.

"Fine, fine... I see how you Asian types complain about your parents. By the way, it's so fucking weird to see your character automated. Looks like a robot, without someone controlling the whole thing. Maybe you should get one of those 'Natural Movement' packs?" suggested Hoshi.

MU players like Hoshi never needed the Natural Movement packs, because the simulation within the Maple net was powerful enough to allow people to move as naturally as they did in the real world. The packs were designed for old soft players, who did not have as much control over their characters as their MU counterparts. The old soft players would not be able to see what their characters looked like within the Maple net, but other characters would see a character with Natural Movement pack blink, breathe, sway, and move like a normal person. Without the pack, the characters, at least from Hoshi's point of view, would look like emotionless robots. Although Alice could only see Hoshi's cartoonish form on the screen, she was sure that, in reality, he was poking around at her character and smirking, as he always used to do.

"Nah, those things? I'd turn into Super Seizure Lady with one of those. Seriously... they don't mimic real movements at all." Alice snorted as her fingers jumped around the keyboard.

"Well, shall we go?" asked Hoshi.

Alice caught the tell-tale signs of giggling in Hoshi's voice, little titters in his breath not unlike laughter. She laughed out loud as well, forgetting her previous anxiety. Alice maneuvered her character again with her arrow keys. Tapping a few other keys and clicking, she invited Hoshi to the "party", allowing her to use her assasin character's Haste power on Hoshi's cleric. Soon, both characters were jumping across the screen rapidly in the fantasy world.

A dark background of towering forests, painted skillfully with tiny pixels, scrolled behind the scenery. On the floating chunks of "land", pixelly graphics of ancient monuments and rocks as well as foreign jungle foliage dotted the screen. Various monsters also lumbered across the screen, drawn in the same, distinctive art style as the characters. Exaggerated expressions and appearances bordering on freakish were quite common here. The most common creatures included large, purple-pink octopi with multiple eyes and axe stump, rotund little trunks with axes through their heads and single eyes peeking out of the bark.

Hoshi's cleric paused for a moment. Swinging his wand back and forth, he slashed at the air a few paces away from one of the octopi. Blue flashes of magic soon felled the monster, which disappeared instantly. With a mischevous grin, Alice sent her character over to snatch the booty the octopus had dropped, a few mesos and a aquamarine ore. The new treasures flashed on her screen, as did the cleric's annoyed expression again.

"Shit. Should have teleported," sighed Hoshi.

"Haha, you magic types are so slow," laughed Alice. "Come on, you said you needed to hunt Neckis?"

Both characters hopped up the ropes, up the ladders. They stopped at a stone gateway at the top of the map. After Hoshi blasted the octopi occupying the area into oblivion, Alice followed him into the hidden portal at the gate. It was not much of a hidden portal, at least from Alice's point of view. The gateway looked like it held something just begging to be entered- lousy design on the part of the old soft artists. In the actual game, Hoshi was probably seeing an old gateway that looked just like any other old rock; that was the real way to hide a secret entrance. Easier done in simulations than by pixel art.

Alice's screen faded to black, then faded into another scene. Similar to the gateway they entered through, they had reappeared in front of a similar arch. Almost immediately, a small green snake shoved Hoshi off the platform. Hoshi yelled in surprise, again causing Alice to giggle in amusement. Alice's character leaped about nimbly, casting thowing stars at the monsters. She slew the monsters with ease. Hoshi, however, clung weakly to a rope as monsters swarmed on the land platform beneath him. As the monsters disappeared off the screen, little graphics of money and items appeared in their stead. Hoshi scurried up the ladders in order to claim the fallen booty.

"I never needed any help getting Necki skins," muttered Alice to herself as she eyed the screen. On a whim, she typed the message to Hoshi as well.

"Not fair that assasins have more dex, can hit anything they want," replied Hoshi's testy voice. In his inattention, he fell off the platform again. Alice giggled at him, her character nimbly avoiding the onslaught of more monsters as they spawned on the screen.

"Do you know what time it is?" inquired Hoshi.

"No... game's fullscreen, and I don't have a watch. What time is it?"

"Time for you to get a watch. Good morning, it's a little past two AM now," responded Hoshi cheerfully.

Alice groaned inwardly. Tomorrow she was going to look as though she had a hangover- not the greatest for an incoming freshman at the local magnet school. Not only would she not know anybody, people would form weird impressions of her the moment she sagged into exhausted sleep in class. _God damn it..._ she thought irritably. As if this idea didn't make her feel bad enough already... she had no way of knowing how imminent disaster was.

"ALICE! You do-nothing, lazy child! Now addicted to that stupid game!"

Alice jerked suddenly, as though she just had a seizure. _Shit, shit, shit!_, she thought in a panic. Her body nearly fell out of her chair. In her fright, her elbow collided with the keyboard, sending a stream of nonsense words at Hoshi.

"Alice? Alice? What just happened there, tell me-" called Hoshi over the headphones. His voice was interrupted when Alice's mother's forceful hand yanked the headphones out of her ears. Static crackled from the headphones. Loud bursts of unintelligible noise also came out, presumably from Hoshi's swearing.

Alice herself could not reply. She knew that any sudden movements, any small motion towards the computer and keyboard could cause her mother to get even angrier. She stayed silent and fervently cursed herself for neglecting to listen. _Shit, I should have heard her coming... argh, stupid headphones!_ She looked at the headphones on the table. She couldn't reach for them now- if she did, her mother would take that as an indelible sign of her addiction to Maplestory. Her fingers itched for the keyboard. If only she could tell Hoshi what was happening now! He would surely laugh, but he would also express sympathy for her plight. She tore her eyes from the abandoned headphones and stared defiantly into the eyes of her mother.

Her mother, although she appeared at least a decade younger than her real age, had the experienced eye of one used to disobedience from subordinates. Her round face, usually genial and calm, was now contorted in furious anger and turning red. Her small body, clad in a flowery nightgown, exuded anger and frustration. The air between them seemed tenser than usual.

After a few long moments, her mother sighed despairingly. Alice tensed up again, now suspicious. _Is she going to disconnect the internet? Send me to gaming rehab? Install nasty programs? Throw away the MU?_ Thoughts raced through Alice's mind, half of them illogical. She attributed this to the amount of hours she had spent awake. But her mother said nothing for a few more minutes.

"Look, Alice... I let you go this time, okay? Just try to make your dad happy tomorrow. That school is very good- he was so happy that you got in, you know," said her mom quietly. Alice nodded. Inwardly, she felt enormous relief at being let off free this time. Maybe not completely free- her mom was about to speak again.

"Go to bed."

Alice reluctantly turned off her computer. She smiled a little bit at the angry-faced figure of Hoshi, jumping madly about the screen. She would have to tell him later if she could. For now, her tired body needed rest... however little of it she could get. She trudged upstairs to her room and collapsed on the bed. Dreaming of endless forest dungeons swarming with octopi, she fell into a deep sleep.


	2. Ennui

"Are you okay?"

Alice jerked awake. Two faces on either side, new freshmen like her, seemed faintly amused at her repeated dozing off during the opening speech. A plump teacher in the back gave her a stern look. Alice took one look at the gray-haired lady and immediately felt a strong dislike towards her. After meeting her hazel eyes, Alice lowered her gaze immediately. Staring felt too awkward, and she didn't want to make an enemy this early in the year. Remembering where she was, she tore her eyes off the lady and smiled awkwardly at the two other freshmen. One of them was a short boy, dressed in khaki pants much like what Alice was wearing. However, he wore a dorky-looking red sweater with black stripes. To her disgust, the shirt was embossed with the school's logo and name. Digital Engineering Academy of Syracuse County. _I would die before I wore that sort of thing... terrible colors. _The girl on her other side looked much more interesting. Although Asian like Alice, her hair was streaked with orangish streaks, and she donned a cheesy anime t-shirt, some bizarre animal character on a black background. _Possibly someone I can relate with... but I guess I should give the other dude a chance too..._

"Oh, I'm fine. Just a bit tired," she said amiably enough. The other boy nodded seriously, as if he thought he knew exactly what she was going through. The Asian girl smirked a little, seemingly of the same opinion as the boy. However, only the boy responded to her comment.

"Yeah, some days you just get like that you know? Don't worry, we're all new here," he responded cheerfully. The other girl still seemed to be snickering. Alice's lips quirked into something of a grin. _Heh... what a naive guy. I bet he doesn't know shit..._

"Ah... my name is Alice Yan. I'm from Memorial," Alice replied, attempting to make some interesting conversation.

"Uh... where's Memorial again?" asked the freshman with a puzzled look. "Oh, by the way, I'm Phil from Scarsdale, nice to meet you," added the boy.

"Small school, in Middletown," responded Alice absent-mindedly. _Huh, is that a school name or a town name...? Either way, must not be a very notable place. But then, I've never heard of many of these weird-ass places. Magnet schools attract a lot of random people..._

"Katie here," said the other girl, who nodded at them both in acknowledgement. She smiled a little as well, but not as widely or enthusiastically as Phil. _This girl didn't include anything... but if she doesn't want to tell, I probably shouldn't ask..._

"That character's from... Reikouten, right?" inquired Alice, gesturing at Katie's T-shirt.

Katie grinned at her and nodded. "Yep- it's a pretty good anime. A little corny, but I can't help liking that sort of thing- and also, do you watch it?"

"Mm, I know the basic gist of the plot. I've watched most of the episodes in my spare time," replied Alice. _Awesome, this girl might not be so bad..._ Phil looked at both of them in confusion. A wiser student might have chosen not to comment about something they weren't familiar with. However, the other freshman decided to open his mouth.

"So... what is this... anime stuff you watch? The only animes I've heard of are Yu-gi-oh and Pokemon, so..." he said uncertainly.

Katie now had to cover her mouth to stifle her laughter. Alice's tired mind also recognized the joke, and she snorted loudly. Maybe a little too loudly, she realized, as the plump teacher shot her another poisonous look. She shut her mouth immediately and tried to focus on the principal's speech. Yet, somehow, she found his drawling words slipping away from her consciousness... until Katie prodded her awake again. By this time, Alice noticed that the rows of seats were rumbling with the hurried footsteps of freshmen. The clamor of voices was too much for her ears; Alice shut her eyes and clamped her hands over her head.

"How long are you going to keep doing that?" asked a loud voice just behind her. Alice jumped up, startled. She glared at the dark-skinned Indian boy behind her. He grinned mischeviously at her, but she could see him making motions as if to shield himself from her.

"Yo, chill out girl, if you're freaked out it's okay- we're all new here, you know," he said with a chuckle. _Not again with that dumb excuse... I bet everyone's going to use it as a way out of weird situations in this school. I wonder if all the other magnet schools are like this...? Maybe I should have gone to PsychCentral instead of this place._ The boy brushed past her, disappearing into the masses.

"So, are you coming are not?" asked Katie curiously. Alice sighed absent-mindedly. She nodded and mindlessly followed the crowd into the hallways.

The hallway was more humid than usual, probably because of the plethora of nervous new students flooding the hallways. As she passed some of the classrooms, she noted the large amounts of computers in some of the rooms, both ordinary PCs and relatively modern Mental Units. The machines also contributed to the school's high temperature, she concluded, after passing several rooms full of them. Maybe it was not such a bad idea to attend a computer technology school. After all, computers were pretty fun to be around. A few teachers frantically paced the hallways, shouting out various letters of the alphabet and their class designations. Alice barely caught hers, and she was about to ask a teacher when Katie tugged at her sleeve.

"Hey, we're in the same class. Room 145," she called.

Alice, surprised, felt a hand drag her to the next class. She vaguely felt a strange sense of happiness. _God, I'm too antisocial..._ she thought to herself. She felt like it had been a very, very long time since someone was so excited to be with her... or, she decided, she was probably misjudging her feelings. Maybe Katie was just slightly concerned for Alice after seeing her fall asleep during the early-morning assembly. She also dismissed the faint desire to believe that maybe she herself wanted to be good friends with this girl._ Better to stay cautious- just because she might want to be my friend doesn't mean she's a good friend... maybe I'm setting my hopes too high._

Alice slouched in her seat, fatigued but warily listening to the teachers. Every class was a run-through of procedures in which the teachers distributed documents, documents of school rules, district rules, and similar items. Many of the students dutifully hole-punched and put the documents in their binders, already fat with looseleaf paper. _Overachievers, all of them._ Alice, on the other hand, doodled on the backs of the papers and within their margins.

"That's such a cute mushroom!"

Alice looked up from her paper. Katie was watching her drawing, her eyes wide.

"Yeah, it's from Maplestory," she said as casually as she could. "Do you play?"

"No... but I might try it sometime," Katie replied slowly.

"It's a good game. You should. Know anyone that plays?"

"Some of the people in my hometown play it. Mostly the Asian guys. They always talk about their guild- I think they called it 'Shinobi'," she said.

"Oh, I've seen their leader plenty of times in-game. Crazy guy, that one, plays more often than I do. His IGN is Asian... something or another. There's too many people with those names. I've never seen him in real life though- I only know that he uses a lot of customization- that's when he makes his in-game character look differently than he does in real life," she added, seeing Katie's puzzled look.

"So, what does he look like in-game?"

"He doesn't look bad, actually. Some crazy people choose the freakiest looks in the game- that's how to can tell they're customized. You also have to pay a bit of money to do so, the more money the more drastic the changes. All I did was alter the eye color and get a cooler hairstyle. The Shinobi guy? He's tall with spiky but cool-looking reddish-brown hair. He also has red eyes- it ruins the realism of it, but he's pretty good looking anyway."

Katie grinned, as if she was appreciating an inside joke. Alice felt a little annoyed- maybe the other girl was making fun of her detailed description. "What, is he a drooling nerd in real life?"

"Kind of, sort of, not really. He's okay. He's a good height for his age, but he looks anorexic. Even so, he eats like a pig. He wears glasses too. His name's Chase Yang, but you might known as Asianfyre, give or take a few x's in the username. Oh, and he's in seventh grade."

Alice's eyes widened in surprise. _I thought that guy was older than me... he certainly acted pretty mature, doesn't hit on girls like all the other perverts in the game. I suppose he's just too shy to do so... he's only a seventh-grader after all, and he looks like the type that wouldn't have a lot of experience with love. Maybe he's gay, for all I know._

Her thoughts strayed over to Hoshi, as her current conversation seemed to be getting nowhere now. The teacher was still speaking in monotone about school policies. Hoshi was also probably at his school now, doing whatever he did. _I wonder how smart he is... He seems of average intelligence. At least he's not like that Bluebird girl... she's insane. Every other night she literally kills herself training or selling things. She probably died fifty times while I wasn't looking... If Maple had negative experience points, she'd be de-leveling by now... I could never live through doing the same thing over and over for days like she does. But, at least I got good money from drop games... at least, when I'm in the simulation. Old software is crap for drop games, especially with the terrible lag at my house._

Her mind took another turn when she remembered what Hoshi had said the other night. _Huh, I wonder if he's pissed at me for leaving so early. At least I trained him- so he's probably not going to get very angry. _Alice continued to occupy herself with her thoughts, staring blankly at the teacher and wondering when class was going to let out. As if a god had finally heard her prayers, Alice beamed when the last bell rang loudly above. As they were dismissed, Alice tapped Katie on the shoulder before leaving.

"If you're interested in playing Maple- check a couple of websites for guides. You'll really regret it if you mess up your character early. And make sure you're playing on the server Broa. It's moderately crowded, but not as stifling as Scania. Plus, your friend, his guild, and I'm on there. Okay?" Alice wondered if she sounded too forceful.

Katie nodded at her, then disappeared away into the sea of people. The crowd surged forward and carried Alice with it. She felt a bit happier for no apparent reason, and she smiled to herself as she searched for her bus.


	3. Karma

Alice stepped into the house. The door creaked a little as she pushed it open. She immediately dropped her backpack on the ground and kicked off her shoes in front of the door, then ran over to the window on the west side of her house. She just caught sight of her mom's red car backing out of the driveway. It slowly inched past the mailbox, then continued traveling down the black asphalt away from the house. Alice's expression brightened as she grinned to herself. _Sweet- no one's home now._ She felt excitement flutter within her. She decided to get to business and fully take advantage of her newfound freedom.

She ran over to the door leading to the basement and pulled it open. Stepping gingerly into the darkness, she groped at the railings as she descended the stairs. Her hand instinctively moved towards the light switch, and she flicked it on. The dim, fluorescent lights revealed a large, dusty room. The hardwood floor was caked in a thin layer of dust. The occasional insect or spider minded its own business in the corners, hanging on the ceiling or hiding between the large cardboard boxes stacked around the area.

A Mental Unit sat in the corner of the room. Multicolored wires spilled over the equipment and the power strip plugged into the outlet. The helmet and gloves sat on the wooden table above the power strip. A large, thick mat sat beneath the table along with the power strip. Little squares of gray rubber covered the top surface, forming a crooked grid. The helmet rested on the table like some sort of Medusa's head made out of blue metal. Bundles of tiny wires, tangled together, sprouted out of the shiny strips of dark blue material encasing the shape. Most of the wires protruded from the black visor at the front, where the wearer's eyes would be covered. A pair of thin gloves lay to the side of the helmet. Minuscule wires pulsed beneath the fabric. It did not connect to the mask, power strip, or mat. Stitched in at the knuckles were black chunks of metal.

Alice knew full well the functions of all the hardware. The helmet sent electrical pulses to target areas in the human brain. The complex interactions of the electricity and the brain's neurons produced an incredibly realistic simulation. Due to international law, the voltage could not go over a certain limit for safety reasons. Thus, although the machine was very effective in fooling the brain, it could not create a perfectly believable environment. The average voltage it induced in the brain was low enough so that, within the simulation, certain sensations from the real world could also be felt. Newer machines performed better in this respect. However, Alice was thankful for the inaccuracies in her older model. Her ears could still detect the familiar sounds her parents made within the Maplestory game, so she always knew when to quit the program and pretend to study.

The gloves and mat were extras. Although the mess of wires clogging the power strip was annoying to deal with, they served Alice and her father well on the Simulation Network. The gloves enhanced the accuracy of tactile information input, meaning that the computer programs would respond more quickly to manual actions. They also provided detailed feedback, creating realistic sensations of almost any imaginable texture. The mat was designed to allow free walking, running, and other related motions. The grid could ripple, slope, and even work as a conveyor belt. Although it was originally intended to reduce cramps and numbness in legs falling asleep, role-playing games like Maplestory or exercise programs that involved walking or jogging made the machine extremely popular.

Alice walked over to the apparatus. She dug around the wires for a few minutes, then flicked the red power switch underneath the mass of plastic and metal. The MU came to life. Information scrolled rapidly across the mask's visor in blue pinpoints of light. The rubber mat also began to emit a faint, bluish glow. The squares shifted around, each component tilting and moving itself up and down as the system started up. The gloves emitted beeping noises, as they sent invisible signals through the wireless network.

The girl stepped onto the mat. Her small, bare feet tingled from the disorienting movement of the rubber grid. She calmed down a little as it stopped, knowing that the MU's mental input would also soon make her forget about it anyway. She pulled on the gloves. Alice flexed her hands experimentally, feeling the wires align with her nerve within the synthetic cloth. Finally, she pulled on the helmet, dipping her head carefully.

Immediately, a rush of visual input flooded her vision. After a brief burst of random color, she found herself in a recognizable scene. She stood in a field of unrealistically green grass, under a cloudless blue sky. The fragrance of fresh air filled her lungs as she breathed, but she could faintly detect the musty smell of the basement beneath the artificial scent. Alice smiled to herself. _So, the system is still imperfect._

Three gateways materialized in the grass, the simulation environment's equivalent of icons. The two to the left were boring doors of dark, polished wood fitted in elegant frames. A sign tacked to the one on the very left read "Weirner Research Conferences" in curling script. No sign adorned the other door, but Alice knew it to be the standard web browser program with flat displays.

The third gateway to the right resembled a small cottage shaped like a mushroom. A small window peeked at the top of the bright orange mushroom cap. A small, rounded door was built beneath the window, with a shiny brass knob. Tendrils of ivy crept at the bottom of the cottage, their glossy green leaves glistening. Smaller mushrooms of various shades of reddish-orange were crowded at the bottom. The overall effect reminded Alice of a children's playhouse in a fairy tale.

Alice quietly stepped through the grass and opened the door.

"About time," commented Hoshi, as Alice materialized in front of him. Unlike his chibi version on the computer screen, he was standing in front of her as a normally-proportioned human. Black hair, cut in spiky bangs, hung about the sides of his face and at the nape of his neck. His light blue eyes glanced briefly into Alice's, from beneath his black and white jester's cap. His white wizard's robe, bordered in a golden yellow, covered most of his body. His white boots poked out at the bottom, the purple gems in the centers shining in the sunlight.

Beside him stood another teenager. Although a few inches shorter than Hoshi, he seemed to have a more confident, boasting air about him. His reddish-brown hair was cut similarly to Hoshi's style, but tufts of it floated in unruly cowlicks at his neck and near the top of his head. His dark brown eyes had a mischievous glint to them. Unlike Hoshi, he was clad in the garb of a low-leveled warrior. The metal of his armor shone a dull gray-blue in the sunlight, and a sheathed sword hung at his side. He smiled at Alice, who inadvertently grew hot. _Why the hell is he staring at me like that?_ She hoped Hoshi and his friend didn't notice her reaction.

"This is my friend-" began Hoshi.

"Peter," interjected the other boy. He grinned at Alice. "Dan, this your girlfriend?"

Hoshi looked visibly perturbed, as he drew in a sharp intake of breath. Alice, who was now used to the constant jibes and flirting of teenage Maplers, said nothing. She shot Peter a cold look. To her satisfaction, his smile wavered, and he stepped back nervously.

"No, no... just a friend," protested Hoshi, Peter grinned again at his friend's discomfort. Hoshi glared at him. "Screw you, Peter. And don't call me Dan- this is in-game, I thought I told you-"

"So you said a million times. Not a lot of people are as touchy as you, Daniel Ha-" Peter was cut off as Hoshi threw a sharp punch into his stomach. Peter doubled over. He staggered back a few steps, then fell backwards onto the grass. Alice wondered how much electricity had hit Peter's pain receptors. _Thankfully... no moderators seem to be around here_, she thought, looking at the empty field. The trees swayed in the breeze, but little else was moving around. _They'd suspend Hoshi for a few days for something like that..._

"We're going to Pig Beach. Peter wants us to train him, and since I need pig ribbons, I was wondering if you'd come help us," continued Hoshi.

"Sure, why not," responded Alice amiably. She was accustomed to helping out Hoshi, despite that there was a significant difference in levels between them.

"Hottie", whispered Peter loudly. He started to get up, but his comment earned him another swift punch from Hoshi, this time into his shoulder. He collapsed again.

"Huh, he must've pulled a few wires with that," commented Hoshi. "Fucker," he muttered, prodding Peter's prone body with his foot. Alice grinned in amusement, but she felt an urge to leave while Peter was still prone. She tugged at her purple jacket idly and readjusted her bandana, a Black Pilfer. Peter groaned, but he did not stand up. The crackling sounds of static came out of his open mouth.

Hoshi nodded. "Yep, he's disconnected something. Don't worry, he'll fix it up soon enough."

"Shall we go?" asked Alice.

"Let's," responded Hoshi. Incredibly, he restrained himself from swearing this time. Alice held back what she wanted to comment. _Huh, so that's what's weird. He's barely uttered a swear today, and usually he gets extremely pissed at people like that Peter guy. What is he doing this for now?_

"I heard that." Peter got up again, brushing the dirt off his blue Lolico armor. Hoshi's expression grew dark again. His lips were white from being clamped so tightly.

Seeing Alice's perplexed expression, Peter laughed. "Oh, 'Hoshi and I have a little bet- see how long he lasts without cursing his dirty mouth off."

Alice giggled inadvertently, covering her mouth with her gloved hand. Hoshi fumed and gritted his teeth. Alice wondered how many swear words were running through his mind right now. _Probably more than I can count... haha._

"Let's go already," groaned Hoshi, shaking his head. He turned around and marched off through the grass. Peter snickered, but he and Alice followed behind obediently.

Alice watched both of them, following at the rear. She guessed that Peter was around level 10 or so, judging by the unimpressive, simple armor he wore. She recognized the sword at his belt as the typical longsword most beginner warriors bought as soon as they reached Perion.

She snapped her fingers. The Info Viewer Mode turned on. Suddenly, Alice's vision darkened, as if she had just put on sunglasses. Blue text floated above Hoshi and Peter's heads. The words listed basic statistics, including IGN (in-game name), level, equipment, and guild. _This kid has lousy stuff. Level 13, close enough. What a noob._

She paused before turning off the Info Viewer. Glowing faintly beneath their names, a guild name flashed. "Starless Sky", the name read in white letters. /Huh, I never knew Hoshi joined a guild... must be a recent thing. Strange though, what guild would want a nooby warrior like this Peter dude?/ She pondered over it for a while. If Peter were actually a veteran player... that would be another story. He could have several million mesos, or he could be the guild leader himself, for all she knew. But, wealthy or experienced players in the game tended to show off their expensive treasures or unique weapons, nothing like the cheap gear that Peter had on now.

Hoshi climbed up the ladder hanging in front of him. He carefully stepped over the green-shelled snail inching by. Peter pulled out his sword and slashed fiercely at it. Emitting a squeak, the green snail dissolved into thin air. He grinned at Alice, who gave him a blank stare._ So? I can kill a green snail. Is he trying to show off?_

Lumps of earth, some huge and others as small as a human's head, floated all around and above them. Grass covered the tops, while roots dangled beneath them. The members of the party leaped nimbly up the small ones and climbed vigorously up the ladders. The warm sun shone above them, among fluffy white clouds.

"It should be around here..." muttered Hoshi. He scanned the horizon, squinting in the sunlight.

A fat pig pawed at the ground on the platform they stood on. It snorted loudly at them, its large eyes glaring at them. Alice lifted her right hand. It was sheathed in deep, copper-colored metal plates of her Meba claw, her assasin's weapon. She held two fingers up, like a pair of scissors. A throwing-star of black metal materialized between the feathers. With a deft movement, the star flew out of her hands and swerved towards the pig. It killed the pig instantly when she flung the projectile.

Peter looked impressed. "What stars are you throwing?"

"Tobis," responded Alice with a shrug.

Meanwhile, Hoshi was yelling loudly and pointing at the patch of white daffodils. "I found them!" he called.

Peter and Alice hurried after him. Sweeping away the flowers with his arm, Hoshi looked quite proud of himself as he revealed the earth beneath. A circular patch of earth, interlaced with spiraling patterns, was glowing a faint blue beneath the daffodils. The hidden portal was just wide enough for one person to stand in at a time.

Hoshi, being the leader, stepped first into the portal. He promptly vanished, without a trace. Peter followed suit, as if he had done this every day of his life. _He's probably not a noob then. He knows the drill._ Alice gingerly stepped onto the portal. The world faded to black.


	4. Arrival

Alice braced herself in preparation for the next blast of visual input. Closing her eyes, she waited for the telltale sounds in her ears that usually told her that she had safely gone through the portal to the next map. Strangely enough, nothing happened. The wind chimes did not echo in her ears, the warm sunlight did not reach her skin. Alice opened her eyes expectantly.

Her body seemed to be suspended in a void of darkness. She could see nothing in the darkness, not even a pinprick of light. Oddly enough, she did not seem to be feeling any sensory input from the real world. She did not feel the wires in ehr gloves, the rubber beneath her feet, nor the heavy helmet on her head. /It's probably lagging again... maybe I should disconnect and relogin./ She waited for a few more minutes, impatiently counting the seconds. The program seemed to have frozen. However, when Maplestory froze, normally a incoherent riot of sounds and visions would bombard her instantaneously. The information coded into the program would malfunction, and she would be booted off the program immediately. Nothing remotely close to that was happening. In fact, nothing was happening at all.

Instinctively, Alice raised her arm to the back of her head. Her fingers were inches away from the off button at the back of her head when, inexplicably, her arm stopped moving. A numbing, icy sensation crept from her fingers through her arm. Panic began to rise in Alice's stomach, but she fought to keep control of herself. She tried to move her arm again. The limb remained frozen in the awkward position, unyielding. Her left shoulder began to feel sore from holding the arm, but besides that sensation she felt nothing.

"Wait," said a small voice, the high-pitched voice of a small child. Crackling static echoed afterwards. Alice's heart beat faster. _Is this a new hacking trick? Who the hell is this person?_

Suddenly, she felt pressed for beath. The paralysis had spread to her lungs. Alice tried to breathe, opening and closing her mouth like a fish, but her lungs refused to expand. She felt as though her lungs had been submerged in an ice bath, so cold was the icy sensation freezing up her body...

"Oh," said the voice disappointedly. _It's definitely a girl, or a really little kid. Is this some idea of a joke? What sort of crazy hacker would want to paralyze someone?_ thought Alice furiously.

"You're not the one I want," whispered the voice in her ear. Alice winced at the sound so close to her eardrums. She felt her numbing legs shake weakly beneath her. But, to her immense relief, she found that warmth was beginning to creep through her body again. Dizzy from lack of oxygen, Alice breathed in short, quick breaths, struggling to stay awake. She collapsed on the ground in exhaustion.

"Alice? ALICE! Damn it, something's wrong."

"Is she okay? Maybe she disconnected."

"If so, that must be one hell of a lag. But that's weird though, she appeared her a few minutes ago and collapsed. That's not normal for a lag."

"She seems to have made it. Wonder if anything's up with her connection..."

Alice struggled back onto her feet. Her hands dug into sand as she pushed herelf upwards. She smiled nervously, still shaken. The concerned face of Hoshi stared back at her, but he relaxed as he broke into a sigh. Peter snickered at the sight, but Alice noticed his tense shoulders relaxing too. He also had been worried, although she normally would not have expected him to do so. He seemed quite amused at Hoshi at the present, but, wisely, Peter declined to comment.

They were standing on a long stretch of white sand beach. Huge, fluffy white clouds floated lazily through the azure sky. The midafternoon sunshine shone brightly above them, causing the sand and sea to sparkle. The leafy fronds of tall palm trees swayed in the wind, as did the wild beach grasses sprouting out of the ground. The endless deep blue ocean seemed to touch the sky in the far distance. The dull roar of the ocean's waves at the shore sounded in the party members' ears. A multitude of pigs crowded at the other end of the beach. They snorted loudly at each other and pawed the ground, their vacant eyes in permanent glares. Some of the slightly larger ones wore bright red ribbons around their waists.

"Alright, invite her to party," called Peter, as he drew his sword. "I'm going in!" he shouted.

A small window popped up in the corner of her vision. "Party invite from Hoshi6028", it read. Alice poked one of the buttons on the window. "You have been invited to the party," another bubble read in the corner, before disappearing. Alice glanced about. Now she could see the red health bars floating above Hoshi and Peter's heads.

She tapped her neck and whispered "Haste." A rush of wind blew past her, and the Japanese kanji for speed glowed brightly in whitish-blue in her vision. Smaller gusts of wind blew past Peter and Hoshi, who had also received the benefits of her skill. Alice leapt back and forth like a purple grasshopper. Black throwing stars sailed from her hands in pairs, accompanied by bursts of red fire. The Lucky Seven throws slaughtered the pigs instantly upon contact. Little red numbers and yellow numbers, the statistics for her damage and for the experience points she gained, floated above the pigs as they died.

Laughing happily, Peter jumped over the pigs with ease, slashing wildly at the same time. Although he was boosted by Haste, the pigs continually charged into him in a huge mob. He could not kill the pigs fast enough with such a low attack, Alice knew. He winced as the pigs charged into him. The brief stinging sensation of hit point loss was multiplied several times by the sheer number of pigs trying to attack him. They shoved him back and forth like a rag doll. All the while, the red in the health bar above him was quickly giving way to black. Hoshi teleported forward in blue flashes of light then killed the pigs for Peter, whipping his wand through the air. The blue streaks of his magic claw attack finished off several pigs for Peter. With another movement, he healed Peter and Alice. Green sparks danced about them as their health bars filled up again.

"Nice Haste, what level?" yelled Peter above the din of dying pigs.

"Level 20," called Alice, as she sent another slew of throwing stars at the ground below her.

"You really should have raised Critical Hit first," remarked Peter with a raised eyebrow. "Haste is cool, but you have lower attack on average."

"Yeah, yeah, I know that already," grumbled Alice. _Everyone keeps telling me the same thing... But I can't stand to live without Haste, everything's too slow. I'm raising Critical right now, as much as I can!_

The sun dipped lower in the sky, marking the passage of more time. Alice paused briefly and glanced upwards, carefully noting the movement. At least an hour, maybe more had passed since she had logged in. Almost naturally, her body swayed back and forth a little to avoid the pigs. The pigs charged carelessly past her, the word "MISS" floating in purple letters above them as they did just so.

"Okay guys... I really have to go now," she said. Pausing in his attacks, Hoshi jogged up to her. Their footprints overlapped in the wet sand, but the waves blurred the image in the sand. Peter, too busy looting all the items and mesos, seemed too busy to come.

"Alright then- see you tomorrow," Hoshi said cheerfully.

"WAIT!" yelled Peter, throwing himself at them. Alice stepped nimbly out of the way as Peter collided head on into Hoshi. Hoshi looked like he was about to swear when his eyes widened. A horde of pigs and ribbon pigs charged after Peter, much to his amazement and Alice's amusement. Alice doubled over in laughter, but she pulled herself together in time to throw some more well-aimed throwing stars at the pigs. Peter, still panting in exhaustion, stared straight into Alice's eyes. Feeling suspicious, Alice wondered. _What does he want now? Is he going to try to hit on me again?_

"You want to join our guild?" asked Peter. Alice shrugged noncommittally.

The invite appeared in the corner of her vision again. This time, it read "Guild invite from Peter88467" in bright letters. After a moment's hesitation, Alice pressed the button. Peter grinned at her cheerfully, as did Hoshi, when he picked himself off the ground. Alice smiled back at him. She reached another arm behind her head, feeling the metal helmet around it. It used to confuse her, being aware that she was in this beautiful fantasy land while still feeling things she left in the real world. The hard metal of the helmet behind her did not disconcert her in the least now. She flicked the switch off.

* * *

"And when the pie was opened, the birds began to sing, and wasn't that a merry dish to set before the king?" a little girl sang cheerfully. She spun in a circle, as agile as a ballerina. Her white tresses flew in the air as she spun, as did the pink ribbons that tied them into pigtails. On her petite figure hung a pink bridesmaid's dress from Amoria. She giggled happily at the stoic figure beside her, her ruby red eyes glancing briefly into his.

The other figure was tall, more than twice the height of the girl. His cloud white hair looked like that of an anime character, except it did not stick up in unruly spikes above his head. It fell into disheveled bangs and wisps around his head. He had red eyes, like the girl's, but they stared ahead emotionlessly. He donned a Black Dragon Robe, made of black cloth lined with gold. A red sash was tied around his waist. His ungloved hand, like a pale spider, rested on the golden hilt of his curved sword. He and the girl stood on the grassy cliff overlooking the Pig Beach. The wind swept at the grass at their feet. His expression hardened when he saw the assasin girl promptly disappear.

"Why didn't you take her, Kalki?" asked the elder sibling in a soft, serious voice.

"I don't know... Tenebrae is a 'sin, and I don't really like 'sins that much. Ensys, why do you have to be so uptight?" The girl giggled again, her white hand covering her mouth. She hummed to herself as she danced in the grass.

"That is not the real reason. Tell me, are you looking for trouble?" Ensys asked, ignoring her question. His red eyes stared coldly into hers. "Are you shirking off your duties? After you meet them, you are supposed to take them," he said to her, an impatient note in his voice.

"Oh... I just talked to her a little bit. No harm done," laughed the girl.

Ensys now began to look angry, his eyes narrowing suspiciously. "That is not how we go about things," he said quietly.

Ensys's hand clenched the hilt of his sword now. The knuckles shone almost as white as his hair from the skin being stretched so tightly.The girl ignored him, as usual. His almost inaudible sigh mingled with the wind, as it rushed past the pair and descended past the palm trees. The rays of the setting sun shone upon them and the beach below them. The ocean reflected the vibrant sky, a darker version of its pink, purple, yellow, and orange hues.


End file.
